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Today marks the fifth anniversary of the YES network, and with it the sports network will air a retrospective in celebration. As noted by Neil Best, columnist for NY Newsday, "YES wasn't the first regional sports network owned by a team, but it furthered the trend by (eventually) gaining broad distribution, producing reliable revenues and making other teams - notably the Mets - lust after their own versions."

YES has had a huge impact on the regional sports network (RSN) industry. The fact that, at its core, the Yankees are the product that makes YES a success is not lost on others that track the television industry. As further reported by Newsday:

Neal Pilson, a TV consultant who used to run CBS Sports, calls YES "a role model for all professional sports teams."

Trouble is, many markets and teams can't support such a network. Pilson was involved in one of those failed efforts, for the Twins.

"My caution is not every team has the combination of distribution, ownership and most important, fan appeal, to make it work," Pilson said.